Rating: 
Summary: Many Surprises In Store
Review: You will experience a broad range of emotions when you read this book. I did the same thing one of the other people who reviewed this book did when he threw it down in anger. But that only compels you to read on, because you know the good guys have to win sometime. The thing I liked best about this book was the introduction of the supernatural. It doesn't drown you in it like Goodkind and Jordan do, but it does add another level to the series. All in all this is one of the best written books I have read. The only negative thing I can say is that I get tired of Martin killing off the characters we grow close to.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding!
Review: In the third book of the predicted series of 6, Martin has managed to pick up the story and slam it home to readers that he knows how to write. Unlike book two, this book focuses on the key characters rather more precisely and concisely. Some of the detail is dropped, which makes it less devilish to tackle. There are rather fewer people to remember, which made it less hard on my brain and helped to deliver a focused, and overwhelmingly drawing story.It is in "A Storm of Swords" that readers come to know the characters more closely and become drawn into their dilemnas, their choices and in some instances, their helplessness. Most of all, their temptations. It is these human aspects that brings the characters to life. And it's not stagnant - as in real life, the characters of this book change over time. We find an unlikely hero in the Hound, a sympathetic trait in Jaime Lannister, a demon in the Imp's whore. Arya, despite all her best efforts, never gets closer to home, and decides a new fate for herself. Jon Snow also meets with destiny, as does his half brother Robb. And there is sacrifice. On the other side of the world, Martin demonstrates impressive writing skills in telling the story of Dany and the Unsullied (the short version was published independently, and I was attracted to it even then). Yet, she too, meets a limit to her power and exploits and learns that she needs to learn how to rule, not only to plunder and conquer. It is the realism that Martin so successfully brings out in his characters that I particularly like. Each individual has hopes, desires, hates, loves, strategies that succeed and fail. They are, above all, human. An outstanding effort from Martin and the most brilliant book in the series yet. Against my expectations, it was not tiring but invigorating, and has whetted my appetite for more to come in the series. I didn't even mind spending all the money on a hard-cover version! An absolute "must".
*
Rating: 
Summary: Wait a couple of years for Mr Martin to finish the story
Review: I normally never buy a newly released fantasy book because I have this strange desire of actually wanting a frickin' end to the stories I read. Seeing this third book released, I figured I was safe - oh, how wrong I was. Three thousand pages of story and very little is resolved. I recommend waiting a couple of years and then visiting your local half-price bookstore. In the meantime, go read something else.
Rating: 
Summary: Great book but increasingly involves adult themes.
Review: I enjoyed the first three books in this series. I agree with some that this series is better than the Wheel of Time series because the plot actually moves with each book. The story line is great and here's to hoping that the next installments are just as good. BUT There are rather descriptive sexual scenes in these books. At first, it was just a scene or two but by this book there are several scenes and the descriptions continue to go into more detail about the various physical descriptions and actions of the characters. If there was any reason I would stop reading this series, it would be this. Actually, if the fourth book has similar descriptions, I'm done.
Rating:
Summary: The plot thickens, the world unravels
Review: If you are reading this, then you've probably read the previous 2 books, and you must have liked them, or you wouldn't be interested.
Then, prepare to be : shocked, enthralled, disgusted, and betrayed. All these things and more, in a world that simplifies itself, then charges on ahead, where there are plans within plans, and where the threats come from the mnost unlikely places and persosn. Tyrion the Imp, shows his deep human side, and becomes the character I most like to identify with, except for Robb. Can somebody please kill Joffrey and his mother already. Jaime Lannister becomes less hateful, and the dog Clegane becomes an unlikely protector.
As the plot moves, or flies along, the twists and turns of the action become harder and harder to follow, and every few chapters, everything changes.
I can't wait for the next chapter, because, if Martin can tie all the loose ends together coherently he will have proven that he is an unsurpassed master at his craft.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful
Review: It seems obvious to me, by some of the reviews on here, that the crux of what this series is about is somehow lost. From the first book we've seen magic increase (the dragons, the lady in red, Danny's attempts to get an army, etc). Also, I find it amazing that anyone can comment on plot threads that haven't been resolved. The series is supposed to last six books, so obviously there are going to be things that aren't tied up neatly. Indeed, unlike his contemporaries (*coughcoughJordancoughcough*), Martin has REDUCED the number of main players in the series. Where there was once six factions trying to gain the throne, now there are a mere handful. Is there an overabundance of sex? It depends on individual tastes. However, what is written and suggested is not unrealistic. In almost every aspect, the feel of the series is more like that of medeival England than of any fantasy setting. It is a series that narrows its focus on the characters while expanding its focus to the world at large. It is a series that is slowly adding magic into the mix, but does so with a sense of realism befitting the world he created. I hate to pigeonhole like this, but it could be called the Babylon 5 of fantasy; there are powers controling (or trying to control) what's happening, but ultimately it's up to the people of the world to decide the fate of the world. That is, if they can stop killing each other first.
Rating:
Summary: A great series but not for kids.
Review: This series pulls no punches it is a hard hitting affair. It is fast and brutal and some won't like that. Based on the War of the Roses (real life) it captures the cruelty of that era in a fantasy setting. No one is sacred and anything can happen. These elements combined with great characterization have made an awesomely entertaining series so far.
Rating:
Summary: Your jaw will drop
Review: This book is the best in the series, which is saying a LOT. I could hardly believe the ending. Simply amazing.
Rating:
Summary: An outstanding addition to a remarkable series
Review: I can accept that some people will not like A Song Of Ice And Fire, after all this is a matter of personal taste, but what has confused me somewhat are reviews from those who profess to have loved the first two books in the series and yet find A Storm Of Swords a disapointment. To my mind it faithfully follows the course set by Martin in A Game Of Thrones and I can detect no drop off in the quality of the series. Some has critized the lack of resolution in the book to which I can only point to the fact that, while certain subplots are resolved, three more books have yet to come in which there will be plenty of space for resolution. Others have marked the book down because of the affect certain scenes had on them, I would argue that it is a testament to the quality of the book that it can evoke such a powerful responce in the reader. In the end I can only offer my opinion for what it's worth that this is one of the most remarkable series around at the moment. If your tired of the usual conventions of the genre it's a breath of fresh air and I cannnot recomend it highly enough
Rating: 
Summary: Good prose. Otherwise I would have given it one star.
Review: Martin knows how to write. He knows how to create living, interesting characters. But he doesn't know how to finish a plot, at least not in this series. "A Game of Thrones" was a really good book, "A Clash of Kings" wasn't, and "A Storm of Swords" was a terrible disappoinment altogether. Nothing is finished. At the end of the book, everything is a mess, plot threads going everywhere. Also, the quality of both plot and prose is declining steadily, making me think that Martin was in a hurry, had lost interest, or both.
When I had finished the book, I wished I had never read it. All it did was show me terror and cruel fate, killing of or destroying a number of good characters with hardly a shred of hope and light.
Also, it irritated me that the amount of sorcery, dragons, gods interfering et cetera increased all the time. In "A Game of Thrones", I was happy to read a fantasy that wasn't based on the regular concept of magic and religion. But at the end of "A Storm of Swords", I found myself in a typical Conan-like environment where the human choices mean less because of magical or divine forces that influence the outcome of every decision.
If Martin started to write this series with a plan in mind, I sure wish he had stuck to it. Instead, he has managed to write a series where the fabric of the world he has created slowly comes apart. It's tragical.
|
